Todd and Julie Chrisley have gained a legal win, securing a $1 million settlement from Georgia amid their prison sentences for bank fraud and tax evasion, it has emerged.
The resolution came from their 2019 federal lawsuit against Joshua Waites, the former Director of Special Investigations at the state's Department of Revenue, as announced by their attorney on Tuesday.
"We have been saying for months that the criminal case against the Chrisleys was highly unusual and had real problems," the family's attorney, Alex Little of Burr & Forman LLP, said in a statement to People. "This settlement is an encouraging sign."
The statement continued: "It's nearly unprecedented for one arm of the government to pay money to defendants when another arm is fighting to keep them in jail."
Todd, 54, and Julie, 51, after they were cleared of state tax evasion in Georgia, sued Waites in October 2019, alleging he "specifically" targeted their family in the tax evasion case.
The reality stars' former lawyer Michael J. Bowers, in the lawsuit obtained by People, said that Waites' initial charges against the Chrisleys were "a shocking example of how an out-of-control public servant can abuse his office and violate the rights of innocent citizens for reasons that have more to do with securing publicity and money for his office than with enforcing the law."
According to the lawsuit, Waites "began to focus his efforts and desire" particularly on Todd's estranged daughter Lindsie, several years ago, and, in an attempt to extract information about the family, allegedly shared the Chrisleys' confidential tax information with Lindsie, 34.
"Ultimately Waites's efforts failed, but in the process, the Chrisleys were forced to incur substantial personal and financial hardship," Bowers said in the lawsuit.
Although cleared by the state tax evasion case, the Chrisleys faced new charges from a federal grand jury in August 2019, accused of 12 counts involving bank and wire fraud, tax evasion, and conspiracy. They have denied all allegations.
The pair started their prison terms on Jan. 17, 2023. Todd's release from the Federal Prison Camp Pensacola is set for Jan. 22, 2033, while Julie will be released from the Federal Medical Center Lexington in Kentucky on Oct. 19, 2028. Their initial sentences of 12 and seven years, respectively, were reduced in September 2023.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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